Reflection of the Cold
by Sangri Star
Summary: Dorothy had an operation, one that made her human. Now she's feeling emotions and experiencing life as a human. She and Roger can finally admit their feelings to one another, but then they fall into a trap that unites Roger with someone from his past. ¥
1. A Dual Transformation

"Roger Smith, you are guilty. The crime you have committed... well, we thought, of all people, you wouldn't have been the offender. But now, you must be chastised. And your crime is punishable only by death."  
  
"ROGER! NO!" Dorothy awoke from her dream.  
  
Thanks to the technology developed over the years, androids could become more human-like. Roger had wanted her to be more human-like, so he decided to have Dorothy undergo an AHTO, an Android-Human Transfer Operation. The data in her mind was transferred to an empty human brain. Then, functions were loaded into the brain and new organs were placed into a human body. She was still half human, half android, but more human now. Dorothy was one of the first androids to undergo the procedure.  
  
And this operation allowed her to have dreams, feelings, and thoughts of her own for the first time. Ever since she had gotten her new body, it was hell. New emotions, new sensations... and the nightmares. They came every night. And they seemed so real.  
  
Dorothy got out of bed and walked cautiously to the full-length mirror. Her body now was so much more beautiful than her old one. She now had long black hair, violet eyes, a tall figure, and breasts.  
  
"And yet, Roger is still in love with Angel. What does she have that I don't have now?" She thought.  
  
She walked out to the living room. Roger wasn't up yet, and Norman was making breakfast in the kitchen.  
  
"Good morning, Miss Wainwright... did you sleep well?"  
  
"Um... yeah, sure. "  
  
"You seem to be a little disturbed. Is there something wrong?"  
  
Dorothy sat down on a stool and sighed. "Can I tell you something? I don't know if I could talk to Roger about it."  
  
"Go ahead, I'll listen." "Norman, I'm in love with Roger."  
  
"Well, I sort of noticed that. You've always seemed to be sweet on Roger."  
  
"Yes, but he's in love with Angel."  
  
"Dorothy, he may seem to love her, but you never know what a person is thinking unless you get inside their mind."  
  
"I'm also having another problem."  
  
"What's that?"  
  
"I've been having visions lately, terrible visions. I think Roger is in danger."  
  
"Oh, pish-posh. They're a just nightmare, that's all."  
  
Dorothy looked away. "I hope you're right, Norman," she thought. "I hope you're right.  
  
Roger awoke to the sounds of the piano playing "Moonlight Sonata." He crawled out from beneath his sheets. "Damn, I should have got rid of that piano a long time ago," he muttered.  
  
He walked into the room with the piano. Dorothy didn't even see him; she just kept playing and playing. There was a look of pain and love in her face, a most peculiar expression.  
  
"I knew you liked to play, but this is ridiculous. I wish to sleep in every once in a while."  
  
Dorothy gasped and stopped playing. She turned around, and Roger saw fear in her eyes.  
  
"It's almost noon."  
  
"Oh... well... sorry about that."  
  
"It's alright."  
  
Roger left the room and found Norman cleaning the den.  
  
"Why didn't you wake me? It's noon!"  
  
"I thought you didn't want to be disturbed."  
  
"But I overslept!"  
  
"You returned home at 3 A.M. this morning..."  
  
"That doesn't matter. You know, I've put up with your mistakes for a long time. Norman, I'm apologetic, but I'm letting you go, you're fired."  
  
"But sir..."  
  
"You're fired."  
  
"I know, but how are you going to take care of this place?"  
  
"Are you saying I can't do anything myself?"  
  
"No, but..."  
  
"Get out of my house, now."  
  
Norman took off his apron and set his cleaning supplies on the floor. He turned, saying nothing, and walked out of the room. He went to his room to get his things. Dorothy met him at the door.  
  
"Where are you going?"  
  
"Away."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Roger fired me."  
  
"He fired you? - No! This isn't happening, you can't leave!"  
  
"Yes I can, it's his orders."  
  
"Well, take care of yourself, Norman."  
  
"Don't worry about me, worry about yourself. Goodbye, Dorothy."  
  
"Goodbye, Norman."  
  
She watched as he walked out the door. Now her only confidante was gone. Roger just simply wouldn't understand...  
  
Dorothy stormed into the den, where Roger was sitting. A fire was already blazing in the fireplace. He turned to her, and she cried out, "How could you do this? He was doing a good job!"  
  
"We didn't need him anymore," he said. "We can take care of ourselves, we are not children! And if you don't watch it, you may not be living here anymore, either."  
  
"You've changed, Roger, you've changed. You used to be so forgiving. What happened to, 'Cast in the name of God, ye not guilty'?"  
  
"I was too forgiving to those who deserved to be punished."  
  
They exchanged looks of fury. She saw something different in him, too different. Had evil consumed him? She had little doubt, but there was a possibility. He stood up and put his hands on her shoulders.  
  
"Now, Dorothy, you're human now, you should begin acting human."  
  
She broke away from him. She whispered, "You should begin acting human too." 


	2. Ectasy

Dorothy lay on her bed, writing in her journal. Her hands were black with ink, but she didn't care. She wrote: "Dear Diary, does this matter at all? Why do I even try or deserve to live like a human? I am being a fake. Roger is being a fake too, I think. Everyone's fake in this house, and probably in this world. Now the person I could talk to most about issues is gone. I am alone. I want to die."  
  
Roger knocked on the door. "Dinner is ready, it's getting cold."  
  
"I'm not hungry," she said.  
  
"You'll starve to death."  
  
"It's not like you'd care."  
  
"I do care, uh... I'm sorry about earlier. Just come out and eat."  
  
"I'll be out in a minute."  
  
Dorothy poked at her dinner with a fork. It was slightly burnt... she didn't even know what it was. The dinner table was silent until Roger spoke up. "It's supposed to be spaghetti. It's my first time cooking, and all, so my cooking may take a while to get better."  
  
"It's all right, it'll do."  
  
"Glad you understand."  
  
After dinner, they sat in the living room, enjoying a couple of drinks. Dorothy figured Roger had had a few drinks beforehand, seeing how freethinking he was being.  
  
"Dorothy?"  
  
"Yes, Roger?"  
  
"How does it feel to have a human body now?"  
  
"It's - It's alright."  
  
"Alright? Ha! You know, I'd rather be an android any day! No feelings, no having to put up with some of the most horrible shit..."  
  
"No, really, it's great."  
  
"Honestly, you must be kidding!"  
  
He set down another empty wine glass and looked into her eyes. "I know you're lying to me," he said.  
  
"Roger, I wouldn't lie to you."  
  
"Everybody lies, Dorothy. I wish you'd tell me what you're thinking right now, what you feel as a human."  
  
"You want the truth?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
She figured he was so drunk he'd forget about anything they were saying, so she continued. "I - I hate it. I don't want to live anymore. And there are so many things I cannot say..."  
  
"What do you mean you cannot say them?"  
  
"It would be being too honest."  
  
"Too honest? I've never heard that before. Too insincere, maybe, but never too honest. Tell me your secrets, and I'll reveal mine."  
  
"Roger, I don't know about that..."  
  
"Don't know about what? I'll understand."  
  
"I love you, I always have. But you love Angel."  
  
"You think I love Angel?"  
  
"Well, yes, I assumed that."  
  
"No, no. We are old flames, but I don't love her now. She's not my type of girl."  
  
"I see."  
  
"Can we promise to be more truthful to each other now?"  
  
"Yes, I suppose so."  
  
"Would you like to learn to be like a human?"  
  
"Be more human? Is it possible?"  
  
"Physically and mentally, you're human. But not so much emotionally."  
  
"I'm aware of that."  
  
"I can help you, Dorothy."  
  
He leaned over and kissed her, wrapping his arms around her. She wasn't so used to this; she didn't know what to do. So she went with her best instinct. He took her hand and stood up, pulling her up as well. "Follow me," he whispered in her ear. He took her into his bedroom and he began unbuttoning her shirt. Then he pushed her onto his bed. It was so foreign, so strange.  
  
"Roger, I don't know about this."  
  
"Shh..."  
  
"Oh, this doesn't seem right."  
  
"It's all right to be scared," he said. "We all are for our first time."  
  
He was on top of her. Dorothy understood what he meant now. Sex makes people more human. There were so many thoughts inside her head. She didn't know what to do.  
  
"Do you feel vulnerable? Do you feel exposed?"  
  
She couldn't speak.  
  
"Answer me, and remember what I said about being truthful."  
  
"I - I... yes, I feel vulnerable, I feel exposed."  
  
"Dorothy, how does it feel? How should I feel? Tell me, how does it feel?"  
  
"I'm cold and frightened and yet..."  
  
"What? What is it?"  
  
"I feel ecstasy." 


	3. Blue Monday

Roger woke up. Dorothy was sound asleep in his arms. He felt the warmth of her body, the beating of her heart. It was a good feeling. He had never felt this way before, even in the old days when he was with Angel. There was just something different about it, and that made it worthwhile.  
  
He figured he'd take a few days off of work. He needed a break from being a negotiator. It was a rough job. Besides, it was his fault Norman was gone, and he had to try and get used to it, sure he could keep the house under control himself.  
  
The problem was, he couldn't stop thinking about the previous night and Dorothy. Ah, Dorothy. She just had an effect on him, like she was seducing even if she didn't want to be. She turned him on. He was so in love with her. He knew he had had a few drinks, he knew everything that happened last night, he couldn't forget. He had slept with her... and the fear he had given to her, remembering his own voice:  
  
"Do you feel vulnerable? Do you feel exposed?"  
  
"Dorothy, how does it feel? How should I feel? Tell me, how does it feel?"  
  
He got out of bed and put his robe on, slightly embarrassed about sleeping with Dorothy. Had he meant to or was it the wine talking? He was sure it was the former. Going to the kitchen, he decided to make a special breakfast. Sure, his cooking skills weren't as good as it used to be, but he'd try.  
  
Bare, no longer scared, Dorothy woke up in Roger's bed. "My God, what a night," she whispered to herself. She had to admit, Roger had opened a whole new door in her life. Not to mention losing her virginity. But it was all right. He had revealed emotions in her she had never felt before. And it was great.  
  
Where was he, though? He had left her, and it made her feel incomplete. She wanted to find him. She grabbed her panties off of the floor, put them on, and then grabbed Roger's shirt and slipped it on. He wouldn't mind.  
  
Dorothy found him in the kitchen, cooking breakfast.  
  
"Good morning, Dorothy."  
  
"Good morning, Roger."  
  
There was no citing of the night before. Dorothy figured that would come up later. Instead, she asked, "Making breakfast?"  
  
"Yeah, want to help?"  
  
"I'd be glad to."  
  
And so, they prepared breakfast together, omelets and home fries. They sat down at the table and ate it, then after a few hours of getting cleaned up and doing things separately, it seemed they wound up in the den again. They were getting acquainted better.  
  
"I thought I knew you, but as it turns out, I didn't know you at all," Dorothy told Roger.  
  
"Same here," Roger said. "Hey would you like something to drink, like last night?"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
Roger pulled out yet another bottle of wine and two wine glasses. "Now, about last night..."  
  
"Last night? What do you want to talk about it?"  
  
"I just thought it was wonderful."  
  
"Yes, it was wonderful."  
  
It was a stony silence. Roger just had to get something off his chest.  
  
"Have you ever not asked me a question that you thought of, even though I tell you that can ask me anything no matter what it is?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Sure," he replied sarcastically. Dorothy looked anxious. "I'm just joking, I believe you."  
  
"You believe me?"  
  
"Yes and no, actually, because you make me wonder if you don't ask me all the questions you think of because you are trying to hide a side of you from me."  
  
Dorothy looked down at the ground.  
  
"Do I wonder correctly? Be completely honest with me." 


	4. The Evil Came Knocking on the Door

"Dear Diary, Roger confuses me. He acts like he loves me, but his words are bitter. Since Norman's not here anymore, it seems I have taken his role. Cooking, cleaning, I'm sick of it. I want to tell him how I feel, but he wouldn't listen, I know he wouldn't. I figure that these thoughts are going to eat my insides until I die. Why do I feel this way? Oh yeah, it's because I'm human."  
  
Dorothy closed her journal and lay back on her bed. If only I could say something, if only..." she thought. The doorbell rang, interrupting her thoughts. She heard Roger answering the door. Curious as to who had come to visit, she stood up and slowly walked down the hallway and down the stairs. She found Roger standing in the entrance hall, and he stood under a chandelier talking to... Angel.  
  
Upon her presence, Roger and Angel stopped talking and looked at her. Dorothy had forgotten Angel didn't know about the AHTO, and she didn't recognize her.  
  
"Roger, who is this young woman, and why haven't I heard about her?"  
  
"Oh, but Angel, you do know who she is. That's Dorothy."  
  
"Oh... I couldn't tell. She looked...different."  
  
"Well, that's because she had an AHTO."  
  
"A what?"  
  
"An AHTO, an Android-Human Transfer Operation. They're very new, but useful."  
  
Dorothy could tell Angel wasn't happy about that, she never liked Dorothy. She would have been even more furious if she had known what had gone on in the past few days.  
  
"May I speak to you privately, Roger?"  
  
"Is it so important that you can't say it here?"  
  
"We can say it here, but SHE would have to leave."  
  
Dorothy spoke up, "It's all right, and I was going to leave anyway. Goodbye, Angel."  
  
"Goodbye, Dorothy."  
  
Dorothy departed the entrance hall, but hid behind a door, eavesdropping on Roger and Angel's conversation. Back in the entrance hall, tensions elevated.  
  
Roger raised his voice and it echoed though the mansion. "You talk like Dorothy is a filthy creature!"  
  
"Well, that's what she is, right?"  
  
"No! She's a human, just like you and me, although I think you are less a human being than she is."  
  
"Roger, she's an android."  
  
"She WAS an android, now she's human!"  
  
"You're overly obsessive about her, but I don't see why. She's unusual."  
  
"She's quite normal!"  
  
"Can you hear yourself talking? I can't believe it! If I didn't know better, I'd say you're in love with this fictitious girl! You've always been this way ever since you met that damn android."  
  
Roger slammed her against the wall. "She's a HUMAN BEING!"  
  
Angel tilted her head to the side and smiled. "I'm right, I know I'm right. You don't want to admit that what I'm saying is true, do you? Do you? You always have to be right, Negotiator." She was cut off when Roger slapped her across the face.  
  
"Get out of here, now."  
  
"Fine then, next time you see me, it will be in hell!"  
  
"Not a likely chance, I'm too good for hell."  
  
Angel pushed Roger away and turned toward the door. She threw it open and stormed outside. He slammed the door shut and under his breath he muttered, "Bitch." 


	5. Disobey

Roger opened the closet and grabbed his coat. Dorothy presumed it was safe to leave her hiding place, so she opened the door and approached Roger. "Where are you going?" she asked him.  
  
"There's a madman out there plotting to destroy Paradigm City completely, and I know who it is. They have blamed other reasons for all of the citizens to have lost their memories long ago, but it was him. I'm going to get him."  
  
"Angel told you that?"  
  
"No. I shoved her against the wall during our quarrel, and a microchip fell out of her pocket. The information on that chip proved everything Angel told me about what was going on was false."  
  
"She's a traitor!"  
  
"That she is. Now, I'm leaving. You stay here."  
  
Dorothy opened the closet door. "I'm going with you."  
  
"No, you stay here."  
  
"You're not going alone."  
  
"Dorothy, I don't want to risk your life!"  
  
"Life is about taking risks!"  
  
Roger embraced her. "I don't want to jeopardize losing you. Please, stay here."  
  
"Roger... I can't!"  
  
"Yes you can. Please, for me." With that, he turned and opened the door. He looked back. "I love you, Dorothy." Then he was gone.  
  
Tears formed in her eyes. This was unusual. She had never cried before, but of course, Roger had never told her that he loved her before. She wasn't going to let this happen to him. She remembered her nightmare, it could become true. Then she knew what she had to do. She ran into his study, even though she knew she wasn't allowed to be in there. She bent down and began searching through his desk drawers, thinking of the possibility that maybe Roger took the microchip with him. After an exhaustive hunt, she found it! She put it into his computer and looked at the information on it. Good thing that one quality of her former android self still remained - her photographic memory. She could remember everything. She placed the microchip back where she found it, ran out of the study, and into the entrance hall to grab her coat. She didn't care what Roger said. She was going to help.  
  
It was snowing, and the wind was icy in her face. She ran down the street, careful not to slip on any patches of frost. Though she was careful, she lost her footing. Dorothy picked herself off the ice, tasting blood in her mouth. She wasn't giving up that easy. 


	6. High Voltage

Roger arrived at the mansion the microchip notified him to go to. He went to the door and knocked. Two guards answered, both of them larger than him. "Do you have an appointment?" one of them growled. "Yes, yes I do," Roger lied. The other one said, "Wrong. Boss doesn't have any appointments today, tomorrow, or any day for that matter. Go away, punk!" Roger was persistent.  
  
"What do you mean? He told me that he was expecting me."  
  
"I don't think..."  
  
Roger took a stun gun out of his pocket. He really didn't want to use force, but desperate times called for desperate measures. On contact with the stun gun, both guards dropped to the floor. "Sorry, guys," he said as he walked inside. Through a labyrinth of halls, stairs, and doors, he made it to his first goal - the power room. He found the backup generator and destroyed it first, and then he destroyed the main generator. Instantly, the mansion was shrouded in darkness. He knew that it would shield him, for now.  
  
Dorothy made it to the mansion, out of breath and numb from cold. She had to find Roger, which was her only thought. She ran up the front steps inside, carefully making sure no one saw her. She had slipped a kitchen knife in her pocket, and she clutched it in her right hand the entire time. Then, all of a sudden, the lights went out. She was nervous... this was not good. What if she was caught?  
  
Roger crept back upstairs, although it was difficult without light. He was sure somebody would run to the power room immediately, and he would be caught. He kept confidence within himself, muttering, "I will not surrender." He knew where he had to go - the office of that madman, Eli Dey Marinoko. He had never heard of this man before, but he sounded so familiar. Everything was strange to him anyway, without any memories of his past. He shook the thought off. He had to find him.  
  
Dorothy ran down corridors and passages, cautious. She forgot why she was here in the first place, but remembered. "It's because of Roger, I have to help him, I have to protect him..." She turned a corner and smacked into something hard. Dorothy fell, and she was not alone. She heard someone groan with pain near her. Then, in the darkness, came a hand. It was so recognizable, but she failed to recall why.  
  
"Dorothy?" she knew that voice so well...  
  
"Roger?"  
  
"What are you doing here? I told you to stay home!"  
  
"I'm sorry, but I couldn't possibly see you go through this alone."  
  
"I can't believe you'd go against my commands!"  
  
"You said it yourself, I'm a human being. I'm not an android anymore, so why should I act like it?"  
  
"But Dorothy, this is not the time for this!"  
  
"Then what time would it be?"  
  
A shout came from down the hall. "I hear something down here! Let's check it out!" Guards with flashlights ran towards them. Roger got up and took Dorothy's hand, and they began running down a hallway. "I think we can escape!" he said to her. They ran through a warped network of passages, but they saw no openings. "Roger, I don't think we can, look at this place!" He did not respond, but kept his hand in Dorothy's. She could hear guards behind them. Then, he stopped, and she saw why. A team of guards blocked their way. One guard flashed his light in their faces. Another said, "We got them, boss. What do you want with them?" Dorothy felt Roger's grip tighten. The guard said, "You're coming with us, the boss wants to see you." 


	7. Reality Sacrifice Love

Roger could hear Dorothy's screams behind him as they were dragged down a hall, lit only by the guards' flashlights. He was slightly intimidated, but he knew Dorothy had never faced fear like this before. He, of all people, didn't know what would happen next. This had never occurred before. He was usually so strong, so powerful, but now he felt defenseless. He knew that he'd never get Dorothy's screams out of his mind ever again, no matter what happened to him.  
  
They were taken to a candlelit marble chamber with a throne-like chair in it. It looked like a miniature amphitheatre, like in olden times. He remembered reading about them in books. And if he thought about it metaphorically, they were criminals about to face man-eating tigers. On the throne, there was a man, but Roger couldn't see his face. The guards threw him and Dorothy on the marble floor. He felt it; it was so hard and cold, resembling ice. He felt something warm dripping around him, and he looked down on his hands. It was blood. He had hit his nose on the floor, and he hadn't felt any pain. There was no pain.  
  
A voice came from the man on the chair. "Well, well, well, the Negotiator. How nice it is of you to drop by! Oh, and you brought a lovely young girl with you, too!"  
  
"I'm here for you, Marinoko. I know what you're planning to do."  
  
"Oh really? What a shame..."  
  
"Cut the small talk, I want to put you behind bars."  
  
"You can't always get what you want, you know. Maybe this time you won't. But I do have some things you would be interested in knowing."  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"Like maybe your past..."  
  
"My past?"  
  
"Yes, I know all about you, even more than you know yourself. First of all, I'd like you to see some people you may recognize. 3502 and 8931, come out here!"  
  
Roger's head was spinning. Behind the throne, Angel appeared. That was no surprise to him, seeing as she had given him false information, but it was the other person who followed - Norman. Norman had been his butler for years, and the whole time he had just been betraying him.  
  
He could not help but to shout out. "Norman, you bastard!" But Norman said nothing, he just smirked.  
  
"Now, Roger Smith, I have more information for you. Of course, this disproves almost everything you've ever known. You already know you lost your memories, along with everyone else in Paradigm City. That is, except for me. I caused that to happen. You don't know your parents, do you?"  
  
Roger replied, "No, I don't, but why does it matter?"  
  
The man leaned forward in his throne. Roger could see his face. It seemed like he had seen it before. Yes, it looked slightly like him, only older.  
  
"It matters, because I am your father."  
  
The thought hit him like a knife. "No, no, this can't be, no, no..." he was so shocked.  
  
"Yes, this is real, Roger. In fact, that isn't even your real name. You are Akira Ken Marinoko, your mother is Natsumi Marinoko, and you know who I am."  
  
"My mother?"  
  
"Well, she was your mother."  
  
"You mean she's dead?"  
  
"I killed her."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because she got in my way."  
  
"Why didn't you ever contact me?"  
  
"It's better not to interfere."  
  
After a long pause, Roger collected his mind. "You can't be my father," he said.  
  
"What do you mean by that?"  
  
"My real father wouldn't do such a thing."  
  
The man took a knife out of his pocket and walked over to Roger. He took the knife and slashed a single streak across the palm of Roger's hand, then did the same to himself. Roger could barely feel the pain as his blood trickled to the floor. "See that blood?" the man said. "The same blood flows in our bodies, Roger.  
  
"No!" Roger struck the man with his bloody hand. "I don't believe you!"  
  
The man, furious, got back on his throne. He said, "You are a criminal."  
  
"Of what? I didn't do anything wrong!"  
  
"You want to live in a world of fantasy; you can't believe what is real and what is not. You live in a paradigm world, just like everyone else in that goddamn city."  
  
"So thinking of a dream world is a crime?"  
  
"You are living in it. That is different."  
  
"You're wrong!"  
  
"Not at all, you are the one who's wrong."  
  
"You're lying!"  
  
"Roger Smith, you are guilty. The crime you have committed... well, we thought, of all people, you wouldn't have been the offender. But now, you must be chastised. And your crime is punishable only by death."  
  
Dorothy spoke up at last. This was déjà vu, her nightmare. "NO!" She sat upright and clung to Roger. "He is Roger Smith, the Negotiator, and he is right. I will never let you kill him!"  
  
The man looked down at her. "And who might you be?"  
  
Angel chimed in. "She's an android."  
  
Roger yelled back, "No! I told you, she's human!"  
  
She rolled her eyes. "Whatever."  
  
"3502, I asked HER."  
  
"I'm Dorothy Wainwright."  
  
"Oh yes, I knew your father a long time ago. What are you doing, defending Akira Marinoko?"  
  
"His name is ROGER SMITH, and I love him. There is no way in hell I'm letting you kill him."  
  
"Dorothy!" Roger would sacrifice everything for her, and she seemed to be doing the same for him. "I do not want you to do this!"  
  
Eli Marinoko yelled, "Guards, seize her." Two guards pulled her away from Roger. He could feel her leaving him... her warm body, soft touch. Now he felt cold.  
  
Eli waved his hand at Dorothy and smiled. "Now my son, you have a choice." Roger looked back at Dorothy, a mix of fear, sadness, love, and martyrdom in her eyes, telling him, "Go on, I'll be fine. You survive." Roger couldn't bear it. Eli's words continued.  
  
"Which will it be? Your life or hers?" 


	8. Struggle Within

Roger leaned forward, contemplating. He pressed a button on his watch and whispered, "Big O". He wasn't sure if it would work. He waited a moment to try and hear if Big O was coming.  
  
"It's no use, Akira. 8931 disabled your dearly loved megaduce. Now, answer. Her life or yours?" Eli said coolly.  
  
Sweat formed on Roger's neck. This was not going well. He knew his choice; he was going to save Dorothy, even if it meant he'd be harmed. But what if they hurt her when he was dead? This was a dire situation.  
  
Eli was singing, "Tick, tock, tick, tock, time is disappearing, everything's growing thin. Ah, which one to choose, which one to choose?"  
  
The haunting words echoed in Roger's head, ricocheting and disturbing his thoughts.  
  
"The walls are closing in..."  
  
He began to hyperventilate. He told himself, "No, he's only trying to get into your head, don't listen to him..."  
  
"You struggle to think inside your head, but it's no use, you'll wind up dead."  
  
The voice in his head told him, "Don't listen, don't listen..."  
  
"The darkness overwhelms you, there is no escape. Just look at yourself..."  
  
"Don't listen, don't listen..."  
  
"...in the midst of hate. You're so used to a peaceful world, with peaceful actions. Now you're facing the worst possible reaction."  
  
Roger burst, feeling ever flowing over him. "You want me? Take me!" 


	9. Leaving a Darker Memory Behind

Dorothy broke down, crying. "No, Roger, please, NO!"  
  
Eli's grin widened. "I knew you'd see things my way, Akira. Guards!"  
  
Roger was picked up by two guards and forced to kneel upright with his head tilted forward. Dorothy was placed opposite of him, tears streaming down her face. "I thought you wouldn't harm her! You promised!" he shouted.  
  
"Oh, I won't harm her. After you die, she'll be set free. She just has to watch you suffer."  
  
Roger thought of something. "Can I at least have a few moments alone with her? I'm going to die, I should at least say goodbye."  
  
"I suppose so, but my guards won't leave. I'm not foolish, you know. Guards, give him five minutes, and then call me back."  
  
The guards surrounding Dorothy and Roger turned their backs, and Eli, Angel, and Norman left. Roger held Dorothy's hands and whispered, "Hold on, I'll get us out of here. He used his watch to call Dastun. "Dastun!" he whispered loud enough for him to hear, "I'm in trouble, and if you don't hurry with some of your men, I'm going to get killed and Paradigm City will be annihilated!" Dastun listened and understood, asking for the address. Then, Roger had to break the connection.  
  
Dorothy still stared at him with heartbreaking eyes. Roger took her in his arms and said, "It's all right. I do hope we'll be safe soon." Her voice cracked as she said, "What if Dastun is too late?" He held her tighter.  
  
"Then I should hope you can go on living without me."  
  
"Roger, I could never do that."  
  
"There is a possibility I will die tonight. If I do, then you must be strong, for you, and for me. Do you understand?"  
  
Dorothy could not speak. She nodded and began crying again. He kissed her, and said, "We love each other, and if the saying is true, true love never dies. Please, let you live on."  
  
Eli, Angel, and Norman returned, and Eli sat on his throne. "Oh, how sweet," he sneered. "Now, guards, I'm ready. Akira, I hope you have a nice afterlife. Farewell." A guard placed a sword against the back of his neck. "Not really how I wanted to die," he thought, "but it will have to do."  
  
The guard swung back and was about to slay Roger when the door of the chamber bust down and Dastun appeared with his police force. "Hold it right there!" he barked. The guard dropped the sword, and the officers filed in. "You are all under arrest; please put your weapons down." He walked up to Roger and Dorothy and helped them up. "Good thing we got here in time, Mr. Negotiator. Thank you for putting these people in jail. Hey, wait, is that your butler?"  
  
"Former butler, Dastun."  
  
"Oh, I see."  
  
"Now, please excuse us, but we'd like to go home now."  
  
"Go ahead, go ahead. I'm just glad both of you are safe."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
With that, Roger put his arm around Dorothy and they walked out of the chamber, out of the mansion, and away from one of the most life- changing places in their existence. 


	10. Morning Dreams

Dorothy and Roger were dancing in the moonlight on a beach. She giggled and grabbed his hand, running into the water of the ocean. "C'mon Roger!" she said as the waves washed up against her dress. She was calling him...  
  
"Wake up, Roger!"  
  
He opened his eyes to find Dorothy propped up on her elbows next to him. Her hair fell slightly in front of her face, and she said again, "Wake up, sleepy head!"  
  
"I'm awake, I'm awake!" He leaned over to kiss her.  
  
"Did you sleep well?"  
  
"Yes, I did. Did you?"  
  
"Yeah, it's a good thing because of all we've been through."  
  
"Well, everything's okay now. I just have to fix Big O, but I have time for that later. Now, let's just relax."  
  
"I agree! Do you want breakfast?"  
  
"No, not now. I just want to lie here with you."  
  
"That sounds like a great idea." 


End file.
